Character Rivalries
Wolverine and Ryu: 'Wolverine and Ryu are rivals due to the fact that both have much in common. Both are fierce warriors; both have spent time in Japan where they learned martial arts skills; both have mentored other characters; both are determined at their goals (Ryu to become the ultimate fighter and Wolverine to repair his troubled life and do right); and both have darker sides that they must overcome. Additionally, both are among each company's most popular characters. Ryu is one of Capcom's most popular characters and is a part of Street Fighter, one of the most successful fighting game series, while Wolverine is one of Marvel's most popular superheroes and part of the X-Men, one of Marvel's most successful properties. *'Iron Man and Morrigan: Iron Man and Morrigan are likely rivals due to several similarities. For example, both are irresistable to the opposite sex-- most men find Morrigan attractive, while Iron Man is a constant chick magnet. As far as abilities go, both seem to use weaponry very commonly, with Iron Man using repulsors or transmitting additional weapons such as cannons and missiles to his frame while Morrigan can shape her wings to mimic modern weaponry, including a missile battery as well as having had access to a large beam cannon. Also, both can fly and both have appeared in many of the Marvel vs. Capcom games. *'Hulk and Chris:' Hulk and Chris can easily be seen as rivals. Chris Redfield is constantly fighting zombies and monsters, and Hulk is a giant green abomination who is a constant target by the government. Therefore, it's easy to see Chris trying to take down The Hulk and vice versa if they crossed paths. *'Deadpool and Dante: '''Deadpool and Dante are very similar, and therefore are rivals in the Marvel/Capcom universe. Both are mercenaries with a liking for guns and swords; both wear red and black (Dante wears a red coat and black shirt while Deadpool wears a red and black suit and mask); both can teleport and heal at an accelerated rate; both are wisecrackers; and both of their names begin with the letter "D". *'Captain America and Felicia:' Captain America and Felicia are rivals as both have their own hopes and dreams. Felicia's dream is to be a famous pop star, while Captain America's dream is for a better future for America. However, the focus of their dreams could also put them at odds. Whereas Captain America's dream is broad and positive for a whole nation, Felicia's is focused on herself. Both fighters are also American. *'Dr. Doom and Chun-Li:' Dr. Doom and Chun-Li both loved their deceased parents dearly, and their death has made them what they are today. Chun-Li has grown strong and works for Interpol in hopes of finally bringing her father's killer and Shadaloo leader, M. Bison, to justice. Dr. Doom has become a powerful sorcerer and incredibly knowledgeable scientist, increasing his knowledge in both fields in order to avenge his parent's death. *'Super Skrull and Trish:' Super Skrull and Trish were both artificially created beings, Trish being created by Mundus to lure out, then destroy Dante, Super Skrull being created by the Skrull Empire to take out the Fantastic Four. Both have not been able to complete their original tasks for various reasons (Trish was saved twice by Dante, Super Skrull was defeated numerous times by the Fantastic Four). They are put at odds as rivals because Trish now decides to fight for good and works alongside Dante in the demon-slaying business, while Super Skrull continues to battle the Fantastic Four until he succeeds in defeating them. Also, they both have powers that come from the main antagonists of the series. *'Thor and Amaterasu:' Thor and Amaterasu are both gods with the responsibility of protecting their respective worlds (Amaterasu being the guardian of Nippon, Thor being the guardian of Asgard). Both can also control various elements of nature using their divine weapons: Amaterasu using the Celestial Brush, Thor using Mjolnir. *'Dormammu and Viewtiful Joe:' Dormammu and Viewtiful Joe have similarly powerful fire-based attacks. Both fighters are also far stronger in their respective dimensions (Viewtiful Joe in Movieland, Dormammu in the Dark Dimension). Viewtiful Joe makes it his job to defeat any and all evildoers, while Dormammu doesn't hesitate to destroy anybody who opposes him. *'X-23 and Tron:' X-23 and Tron are both teenage anti-heroines: Tron commits constant acts of thievery but has also shown some proper morals, while X-23 was trained to be a cold blooded assassin meant to take on any task, but now seeks to turn her life around with the help of the X-Men. Tron has vast knowledge (for someone her age) of mechanics and employs it in all of the robots and mechs she builds, X-23 has incredible expertise in the stealth and assassination arts (which she now uses to defeat any villains whom the X-Men have their eye on). *'Spider-Man and Wesker:' Spider-Man and Wesker were both Geniuses given their powers from biological experiments; however, Spider-Man's powers were an accident, while Wesker's were intentional. Their views on these abilities put them at obvious odds. Spider-Man believes with great power comes great responsibility, and uses his powers to protect the innocent, whereas Wesker believes his powers make him a god, and takes no responiblity for anything he does, justifying them in his quest to take over the world. Therefore, Wesker and Spider-Man are rivals. *'Magneto and Spencer:' Magneto and Spencer both have powerful control over their metal related abilities. Spencer has been trained by T.A.S.C. to sync well with his mechanical Bionic Arm and is seen as one of the world's strongest bionics, while Magneto, naturally inherited his near-limitless control of all magnetism and is seen as one of the most powerful mutants in the X-Men universe.They both also have betrayel in misconception in different universes, Magneto having no one but villains to understand his reasoning for destorying man-kind while Spencer was betrayed by the one who he(The original) killed himself to save. *'M.O.D.O.K. and Arthur:' M.O.D.O.K. and Arthur are rivals due to their mastery of weapons. However, Arthur specializes in the use of mid-evil age weaponry and magic, whereas M.O.D.O.K. specializes in the use of modern weaponry and technology. Their both also in the silly and seriouse side, Arthur being a midget who takes his cause seriously, and M.O.D.O.K being a a Floating head with not much fighting potential but very dangerous. *'She-Hulk and Zero:' She-Hulk and Zero are both advocates for their respective causes. Zero seeks to protect the Reploid race by destroying any and all Mavericks, while She-Hulk is an attorney who makes it her job to protect the innocent as both She-Hulk and her human alter-ego, Jennifer Walters. Also, they were both Secondary characters in their series who then got their own spin-offs. *'Storm and Crimson Viper:' Storm and Crimson Viper both have a technology vs. nature rivalry. Crimson Viper's abilities stem from her specially designed battle suit, giving her control over fire, earth, and electric-based attacks, while Storm's abilities stem from her mutant genes, giving her the ability to control all forms of weather.Its interesting to note that Crimson Viper plays a busy mother while Storm played an adopted daughter. *'Phoenix and Haggar:' Phoenix and Haggar have a protector vs. destroyer rivalry between each other. Haggar has protected his community of Metro City from the great threat of the Mad Gear Gang, while Phoenix has destroyed whole communities in Dark Phoenix mode. They are also opposites in their attributions, Haggar's a Male, who fights Physically and has one of the largest health in the game, while Phoenix's a female, who fights mentally with projectiles and has the smallest health in the game. *'Taskmaster and Akuma:' Taskmaster and Akuma both use the fighting styles of others. While Akuma uses the fighting style also used by Ryu, Ken, Dan, Sakura, Sean and Gouken, Taskmaster uses fighting styles taken from Captain America, Deadpool, Hawkeye, Black Knight, Spider-Man, Wolverine and various other Marvel heroes and villians. While both are considered villains, they are technically anti-heroes who fight for personal gain; Akuma fights to expand his limits and use the Satsui no Hado to it's fullest extent, while Taskmaster is a mercenary who fights only for money, thus putting the two at odds. *'Sentinel and Hsien-Ko:' Sentinel and Hsien-Ko have a magic vs. technology rivalry. They both have a mastery of their hidden weapon systems with their respective abilities; Hsien-Ko conceals an arsenal of traditional weaponry in the sleeves of her outfit using her abilities as a Darkstalker, whereas Sentinel has its arsenal of modern weaponry incorporated into its body. Interesting to note is how both have been opinionated the other way around, Sentinel will do anything regardless if its programmer is good or bad while Hsien has always been viewed badly because she's a jiāngshī. *'Shuma-Gorath and Jill:' Shuma-Gorath's rival is Jill for the same reasoning as Chris' is Hulk. She often fights against zombies and monsters. Shuma-Gorath is a six-tentacled cyclops, not unlike the monsters that Jill may fight. Interesting to note is how Jill was mind controlled to be Wesker's puppet, while Dr. Strange needed to fight against Shuma-Gorath from the inside, only to fail, and become the new Shuma-Gorath. *'Hawkeye and Strider Hiryu:' Hawkeye and Strider Hiryu can be seen as rivals for a few reasons. Both mastered their basic fighting style at a young age, Hiryu being the youngest Strider to reach Special A-Class, and Hawkeye learning his archery skills as a child working at a circus. Their personalities contrast greatly too: Strider is stoic and silent while Hawkeye is loud and brash. *'Ghost Rider and Firebrand (Red Arremer):' Ghost Rider and Firebrand oppose each other for numerous reasons. Both characters are demons, but while Firebrand is a demon that serves the devil and enjoys hurting others, Ghost Rider is a demon that serves the greater good, and protects the innocent and punishes the guilty, putting them at odds. Both primarily used fire-based attacks aswell. They both also seem to bear the opposite of what their doing at times, some think of Ghost Rider as a bad guy from what he does, while Firebrand has been a hero,but only to his people of Demon Village. *'Dr. Strange and Nemesis:' Dr. Strange is often pitted against demons, monsters, and other abominations, such as Dormammu and Shuma-Gorath, and Nemesis would certainly fall into the same category as them. They also present a thematic science vs. magic rivalry since Nemesis is a scientific abomination and Dr. Strange is a magic wielder. In addition, they are polar opposites in mentally, Dr Strange being an intelligent, patient, creative spell caster; while Nemesis is a mindless, straight-forward, unrelenting killer. Interesting to note is how they were created/Transformed into the other, Nemesis is an abomination made in human form, while Dr. Strange struggled only to be the new Shuma-Gorath an abomination. *'Iron Fist and Vergil:' Both Iron Fist and Vergil use a fighting style typically associated with Asia (Iron Fist employs chi-enfused martial arts, while Vergil wields an O-Katana known as Yamato.) They have also experienced similar family tragedies, witnessing the death of at least one of their parents when they were children. *'Nova and Phoenix Wright: '''Nova and Phoenix Wright are rivals because of power,and who they use it against. Nova having a very large array of powers, while Phoenix Wright has absolutely no powers at all,Nova gained supernatural powers which he uses to fight regular crime,while Wright, a normal human, has had numerous encounters with the supernatural, and even faced villains of a mystic nature. Both have also had to overcome impossible odds on a normal basis and are extremely determined in their resolve to protect the innocent as they both started out having a sense of powerlessness and went on to become everything they could have ever dreamed of.